Melbourne's Christmas celebrations set to 'sleigh'

City of Melbourne Lord Mayor Sally Capp said the $3.6 million Christmas campaign will light up the entire municipality for the anticipated 170,000 extra visits to the city during the festive period.

"This year's Christmas campaign will see the beloved Christmas Festival return to Federation Square, while Santa's House will find a new base at the front of the Melbourne Town Hall," the Lord Mayor said.

"Christmas Square is going to be all things big; with our 16m tall Christmas tree featuring a beautiful new sparkling star and the iconic giant Christmas Bauble, which will be a show stopper for everyone to take photos in front of."

"The Christmas tree, which will be officially lit on Friday 30 November, will light up the night's sky with its 192 individually programmed branches, providing a dazzling light show every night."

Visitors will be able to make their mark on Federation Square's Yarra Building by producing their own Christmas projection, using savvy interactive finger paint technology to control the light projections.

From Friday November 30, families can visit Santa with his elves and take free photos on their smartphones at Santa's House outside Melbourne Town Hall. Santa's House will be open from 10am to 12pm and 1pm to 3pm daily. Santa will also be around Thursday and Friday evenings from 4pm to 7pm.

The Lord Mayor said the Gingerbread Village created by the talented pastry chefs from Epicure will be the biggest one yet as it returns for its eighth year at a new location in the Riverside Gallery at Federation Square.

"The Gingerbread Village, made from 560kg of gingerbread, will feature famous Melbourne landmarks, with all profits supporting the Royal Children's Hospital Foundation," the Lord Mayor said.

"The Christmas trading season is the most important time of year for city businesses. We're providing more decorations in more locations to ensure families can enjoy Christmas, no matter where they are in the city.

The Christmas program will include decorations across precincts including Carlton, North Melbourne and Docklands.

Fast facts:

Christmas Festival runs from Friday 30 November until Tuesday 25 December Christmas light projections will be at three key locations – Federation Square (feature animated show), static shows at Melbourne Town Hall and New Quay Promenade in Docklands. On the 6th, 13th  20th, 21st and 22nd December, Federation Square's digital screen will be full of Christmas cheer with the screening of a specifically commissioned film that celebrates the true gifts of Christmas – centred around families, friends and community